Road marking device



April 24, 1934. R. R. ROBERTSON ROAD MARKING DEVICE Filed Sept. 11, 1931 Patented A r. a4, 1934 ROAD MARKING DEVICE Robert R. Robertson, Chicago, Ill.

Application September 11, 1931, Serial No. 562,261

4 Claims.

In the construction of concrete roads and the like, it has been the practice to provide a longitudinal disposed center strip or marker where-- purpose of designating the center of a road in the daytime, it has been found extremely diflicult to observe the center line of the road at night particularly on out-of-town roads-or highways which are poorly lighted.

To obviate the difliculties encountered in trying to observe the center line of a road at night, this invention has been devised forthe purpose of providing road markers or sealer strips with sparkler buttons or other suitable indicators, which are spaced at given intervals in the, road marker or sealer strip in such a way that the sparkler button will present at night suitable light-reflecting surfaces which, when receiving the rays of light from vehicle headlights, will produce an illuminable eiTect and serve as a means for efiectively designating the center of the road so that traflic passing in opposite directions can conveniently stay on the proper side of the road.

It is an object of this invention to provide road center line markers with means whereby the center of .the road may be readily observed at night. 1

It is also an object of this invention to provide road markersor. sealer strips with sparkler buttons or the like for the purpose of reflecting rays of light striking the same to produce an illuminable effect to indicate the center of a road. 1

It is an important object of this invention to provide road center line markers and the like with suitable sockets or pockets for the reception of sparkler buttons or the like, which will act as reflectors of light at night to clearly indicate the center of a road to facilitate night Other and furtherimportant objects of this invention will be apparent from the disclosures in r the specification and the accompanying draw- The invention (in a preferred form) is illustrated in the drawing and hereinafter more fully described.

On the drawing:

Figure 1 illustrates a fragmentary top plan view.

of the middle portion of a concrete road having a road marker embedded thereinwith said road marker provided with sparkler buttons embodying the principles of this invention.

Figure 2 is an enlarged fragmentary isometric view of a middle portion of the road illustrating a portion of an improved road marker embedded in the concrete and having sparkler buttons forming a part thereof.

Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary detail section taken on line IJI-III of Figure '2.

Figure 4 is an enlarged fragmentary detail section similar to that illustrated in Figure 3, illus trating a modified form of sparkler button.

As shown on the drawing:

The reference numeral 1 indicates the crown or upper section of a concrete road having the center of the road designated by means of a road marker or sealer strip 2, the longitudinal or side margins of which are deflected downwardly to provide flanges 3. The middle portion of the road marker is deflected to provide a center channel 4 to provide a center groove which may be filled with pitch or other suitable material for indicating the center line of the road. Welded or otherwise rigidly secured to one side of the channel 4 is a blade orstrip 5 which projects downwardly into the upper portion of the concrete "and which serves to eventually produce a center crack in the road. Struck from the body portion of the road marker at spaced intervals 35 are staggered or alternately arranged lugs, tongues or flaps 6 of any desired shape which are "deflected downwardly to be buried in the concrete forming the crown of the road. As illustrated in Figure 2, the deflected lugs or tongues 6 serve as anchoring devices for the road marker and the openings formed by the deflected lugs or tongues-are adapted to be filled by the concrete of the road.

Provided at spaced intervals in the body portion of the road marker are staggered or alternately arranged sockets or pockets '7 which are formed by deflecting portions of the material of the road marker to form the sockets or cups '7, the lower portions of which are provided with openings at 8.

Engaged in each of the sockets, cups or pockets '7 is a sparkler unit or device comprising a sparkler button or'head 9 supported on a base section 10 which is shaped complementally to the shape of the interior of the socket 7 so that the sparkler unit may be rigidly seated in position in the road marker. Rigidly secured centrally to the lower portion of the base section 10 of thesparkler unit is a nail or pin 11 which maybe tapered as I no illustrated in Figure 3 and which is adapted to be projected downwardly through the opening 8 of the socket 7. The end of the tapered nail or pin 11 is bent over to provide a hook portion 12 which, when in position in the concrete serves as a retaining or anchoring means for the sparkler unit. The head or button portion of the sparkler unit is preferably constructed of chromium steel, reinforced glass or any other hard substance or material which may have the exposed surface thereof cut or ground to provide a 'plurality of reflecting surfaces 13 such as diamond cut or the like. The buttons or heads of the sparkler units are preferably dome-shaped or convex so that the reflecting surfaces 13 there-' of are positioned to readily receive rays of light from vehicle headlights or the like and act as reflectors of the light so that the exposed heads of the buttons will serve as sparklers to produce an illuminable effect at spaced intervals along the central portion of the road whereby the center line of the road may be easily discerned at night or in dark places such as tunnels and the like.

Figure 4 illustrates a modified form of the sparkler unit in which a road marker or sealer strip is designated by the reference numeral 14 and is provided at spaced intervals with sockets or cups 15 which are of increased diameter or size at their lower ends to afford a dovetail or frustum-shaped chamber for receiving a sparkler device or unit. The modified form of sparkler unit is adapted to be constructed from..a plastic material which is pressed into the cup 15 to provide a base section 16, a portion of which projects upwardly above the top surface of the road marker to provide or form a rounded or convex button or. head 17. The plastic material forming the body portion of the sparkler button has embedded therein steel chips, pieces of carborundum, glass or other suitable material which will serve as reflector units 18 in the convex surface of the head or button 17 when the convex surface of-the button is finished so that the exposed surfaces of the sparkler articles or units 18 may be polishedto act as reflecting surfaces for rays of light received from vehicle headlights or the like during night driving.

The sparkler button 17 may be located in staggered relation on opposite sides of the center wide range without departing from the prin-v ciples of this invention, and it is, therefore. not the purpose to limit the patent granted hereon otherwise than necessitated by the scope of the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. A road center line marking device comprising a strip of material having the side margins deflected to form flanges and the middle portion deflected to form a channel, a plate secured to said channel, projections struck downwardly fromsaid strip of material, apertured sockets formed in said strip of material, sparkler means in said sockets-adapted to serve as light reflectors, and anchoring members on said sparkler means projecting through the apertures in said sockets.

2. A road marker comprising a strip of mazerial having apertured sockets formed therein, sparkler means seated in said sockets, and hook shaped anchoring means formed on said sparkler means and projecting through the apertures in the sockets to be embedded in the road.

3. A road marker comprising a strip of material having depressed apertured sockets formed therein projecting below the bottom of the strip,

means for securing the strip of material in position on a road, and sparkler means seated in 

